You knew I was going there. And deep down, you knew I’d be going there after a bender.

It’s okay, I won’t judge you. As long as you don’t judge me.

E and I had a late one on Saturday night. This weekend marked the three year anniversary of our first date, which was an epic 12 hour long adventure that ended at 5 am because Daylight Savings Time kicked in while we were out. I blame DST because it fools you to think you’re hanging out at a respectable hour of 1 am, but it’s really 2 am, and then you stay out because it doesn’t feel late. And you have more drinks because it’s not that late. But all of a sudden it’s 5 am. LATE. And you’ve had way more drinks than you planned.

E and I did the same thing again because of Sunday’s DST. But now we’re three years older and getting a little too grey and wrinkle-y for these young kid’s antics. We didn’t wake up until noon. E didn’t get out of that white robe until 4 PM. There was only one thing that could feed these hangovers—chicken and waffles.

And I did ’em right—cornbread waffles with chives and cheese. Fried buttermilk-soaked chicken breasts. Maple syrup. Oh yeah, I went there. All the way there!

This sandwich is not for anyone trying to watch their figure. Fried meat, cheese…and do you see how thick those waffles are? I was so satisfied after eating the sandwich I crawled back in bed with a full tummy and had a two hour nap. I woke up just in time for dinner, hungover subsided, and sick memories of good times and great music from the night before.

Chicken: Mix buttermilk, cayenne, smoked, paprika, thyme, salt and pepper in a bowl, then pour into a large freezer bag. Place chicken inside, and move the bag around to evenly coat chicken in the buttermilk mixture. Place in refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes, or overnight. When ready to cook, remove chicken from fridge, and bring to room temperature.

Dump vegetable oil in large skillet or dutch oven, and heat over medium flame to get hot (like 350 degrees hot). Mix flour, cornflake crumbs, a dash of the paprika, cayenne and salt and pepper into shallow dish. Dredge chicken through flour mixture to evenly coat the pieces in the flour, letting it stick thickly to the buttermilk. Place carefully in hot oil, and fry for about 7 minutes, turning once. When golden brown, remove from oil, and let drain on baking rack over a baking oven).

Waffles: Mix together flour, cornmeal, baking soda, baking powder, salt, black pepper, cayenne and smoked paprika until just blended. Then mix butter, egg yolk, buttermilk and honey. In a small bowl, whip egg whites until they form semi-stiff peaks, then fold egg whites into batter. Then fold in chives and cheese. Pour into waffle machine, careful not to overfill it (I still do. I’m still practicing!). Cook according to directions on your machine.

Make sandwich: Dress greens in olive oil. Stack one waffle on plate, then pile of greens, then chicken breast, then drizzle on maple syrup, then another waffle. Cut in half on the diagonal, and serve.